Blogging at Castle in the Country

March 3rd 2009

Here within the castle kingdom, I’m trying to find my way through the maze of information I have accumulated about creating a blog and today I’m taking the somewhat intimidating plunge of starting my own.

For several months now I’ve been peering into other blogs that appeared magically in my in box because they used words that I put on Google alert such as Castle or country or bed and breakfast. These are words that have importance to me because I am the owner and Innkeeper of Castle in the Country, a bed and breakfast inn located in Allegan Michigan. Everything that happens within the walls (and 65 acre property) of this Castle is extremely important to me and to my husband of almost 30 years, Herb. Herb and I have two children, who are now young adults and were raised in the bed and breakfast business. Sometimes I’m quite sure my friends and family think these are the only words that are in my vocabulary… and that I’m quite a workaholic about our business. But as I’ve mentioned to many guests, and to my children on more than one occasion, this job is pretty much a “lifestyle” occupation. To me this means I live and breath the bed and breakfast business and I do love doing the work it demands. One of the best parts about this occupation of Innkeeping is that it requires you to be master of many things, like decorating, hostessing, housekeeping, marketing and all the while making it look effortless…but that means that I’m never bored! You may have noticed that I don’t mention the jobs of cooking, landscaping and accounting. That’s because those are Herb’s areas of expertise and I am eternally grateful that he’s got them covered.

Herb & I have been talking about what we would write about in a blog for several months as well, and although I have no idea why, (or if) anyone would be interested, I considered the other “strangers” blogs that I found immensely interesting, sometimes just because their writing let me enter their world for just a short while and I found myself sharing a sense of connectedness & sometimes a “kinship” as I read their stories about their vacations, or their everyday tasks of caring for children or their soapbox rantings about politics or religion. Sometimes I was deeply moved when I viewed their photos or read about their personal feelings about faith & family.

So, I’m going to try using this new modern technology to do something quite ancient, connect with other human beings and see if we can be encouraged by each other & maybe even be helped by peering into the experiences of another. But, for now I just want to check the task of “start a blog” off my to do list and see where it goes from there.

The temperatures may be dropping outside, but we have all the best ways to keep you cozy this season. For the active adventurers and adrenaline junkies, there are plenty of winter sports and activities in the area that are sure to get … Continue reading →